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5-24-2026 Bellwether Bulletin
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The Bellwether Bulletin 
Weekly Fiber News ~ Patterns ~ History & Lore
May 24, 2026
📰 The Fiber Feed: Top News
New App Scans Clothes for PFAS and Microplastics: A new app called Wove now allows users to scan clothing labels, screenshots or shopping links to sniff out synthetic fibers, microplastic shedding risks and PFAS. Founded by Emily Hemphill, whose own fertility and wellness journey inspired the app’s creation, Wove reflects a growing consumer demand to better understand what textiles are made of. “Most people trying to live healthier lives already swapped plastic containers, filtered their water and cleaned up their skincare routines, but clothing is often the last blind spot,” said Hemphill. “We built Wove to make understanding fabrics feel as intuitive as reading an ingredient label while helping shoppers find better alternatives they can realistically wear, afford and feel good about.” | Read more at PR Newswire

British Wool Launches Scottish Wool Certification Logo: A new Scottish Wool logo now helps consumers identify products made with Scottish wool. Unveiled by Campaign for Wool and British Wool late last month during an event in Selkirk, Scotland, the initiative aims to strengthen transparency in the supply chain while promoting Scottish wool. The event also highlighted the full sheep-to-product process and showed how heritage kilt manufacturers are incorporating the local fiber. | Read more at the Campaign for Wool

Fashion Students Reimagine Sustainability: A new generation of fashion students is embracing weaving, mending, upcycling and slow-fashion techniques as both creative practice and environmental statement. Young makers like Catherine MacGregor, a Kent State University BFA fashion design student, discussed how something as simple as an introduction to sewing during the pandemic launched a deep interest in both fashion and sustainability. Another design student, Cate McNamara, has been deeply active in a grassroots movement to rebuild local textile economies — called Rust Belt Fibershed. | Read more at Kent State NewsLab  

🧭 Fiber Frontiers
Fibershed: Building Regional Fiber Systems: Founded in Northern California, nonprofit organization Fibershed is working to rebuild local textile economies by connecting farmers, ranchers, fiber artists, mills, dyers and designers in regions where clothing fibers can be grown and produced close to home. Fibershed promotes climate-beneficial agriculture and regenerative land practices, and it helps support small-scale producers often overlooked by the global textile system. The organization has become a leading voice in the movement toward traceable, place-based fashion. Supporters can get involved through local affiliate groups, educational events, fiber sourcing directories and advocacy for regenerative textiles. | Read more at Fibershed.org
Photo by Konstantinos Papadopoulos on Unsplash
🌱 Fiber Feature
Himalayan Nettle: Long used in Nepal, Himalayan nettle fiber comes from the wild Girardinia diversifolia plant, a tall stinging nettle that grows naturally in high-altitude forests.
The bark peeled from the plant’s woody stems is boiled with wood ash and beaten to separate the silky bast fibers (found in the plant's inner bark) and then spun into yarn. The material is prized for its strength, breathability, linen-like texture and durability. A report by ScienceDirect further noted that cellulosic bast fibers are “generally less expensive than synthetic fibers and possess competitive mechanical properties.” | Read more at ScienceDirect

🧶 From the Studio:

Don't forget: The Winter Mountain Beanie pattern is free for you to download!
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📜 Heritage & Lore
A dose of fiber history
The Wool Act and America’s “Homespun” Resistance: In 1699, the British Parliament passed the Wool Act to protect England’s textile industry by restricting the export of wool and wool goods from the American colonies. Decades later, as tensions intensified, colonial women transformed spinning and weaving into political acts of resistance. Public gatherings known as “spinning bees” encouraged communities to produce homespun cloth from local flax and wool rather than rely on imported British textiles. | Read more at Clatter Ridge Farm

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